Swinging seesaw



Dec; 28, 1948. E c, BA|| EY I I 2,457,627

SWINGING SEESAW Filed Jan. 10; 1944 Wag Patented Dec. 28, 1948 UNITEDSTATES PAT ENT CE r :SWINGING SEESAW "Emmett-C; Bailey, Washington, D.C.

vAllll licationJanuary :10, 1944,-Serial No. .517,694

12Claims.

This invention relates to recreational apparatus .of the olasslknown ascounter-balanced or single-occupant .seesaws. As. is implied from thename, such devicestcustomarily differ from the .ordinary, twin-occupantseesaw in "having counter-balancing meansin oneform or another whichtakes the .place of one of the occupants and enables .a .single rider.to enioyiniarg eymeasure the physical .and psychological benefits .o'fseesaw exercise.

.Such devices include .small .teeter boar'ds -in which the .riderfsweight balanced by a coil spring through .a lever of the second class:and hobby-horses or bouncers in which an .upwardly slanting, flatspringLis ,fiexed .as the rider moves up and down. Although wide variations inindividual design arelknown to the art, such devices as .a class appearto "have ,at least one feature common, viz: the -ridermoves simply upand down in a vertical ,plane, although he may vary somewhat theamplitude of his movement. Asa result of this limitation, the child soonlloses interest .in his toy and the older the child, the -.earlier 'isthis inevitable result. Generally such devices, therefore, .aremanufactured in sizes suited only .to young children and are constructedwith only .a relatively slight spring adjustment so that the toy must'be laid aside as the child grows older.

The primary object of my invention is to provide a swinging seesaw inwhich the rider is not limited to moving simply up and .downbut mayexecute, if he so desires, a variety-of movement. More specifically, hevmayswing from side to side as well as up and down or may describe .apath having .continually varying horizontal and vertical components ofmotion. The oscillatorysystem of which the seat for the rider is aparthas a central position 'of stability when the rider is motionless inthe seat. A "slight shift of the rider's "body, however will start thesystem ,into oscillation. "llhe pathof the oscillation is determined bythe impetus and direction,..but most of all by the timing of this shiftwith thennatural period of oscillation of the system. The inexperiencedchild quickly masters the movement giving the greatest amplitude,rapidity and exhilaration. In this 'gyration the seat and rider swingdown to a low, inwardly. inclined or banked side position and thenspring upward through a central position at ileastasfhigh .as that shownin Fig. 1 .and down to an inwardly inclined side position-opposite .tothe 'ifirstu The motion can .be made quite rapid depending upon thevigor oftheriderfs movements. The' ibanlv ing or inward inclination ofthe seat as thekla'tter moves to either side of Tits centralgpos'ition(Fig. 1) not only'insures.againstuoverturning but assures therider .ofthe inherentstability .of the seat "regardless of .how vigorous his.movement becomes. This "banking action coupled with the lateral freedomof the seat-carrier produces with the weight of the rider apendulum-likeaction that maybe set into oscillation very-easily; Anotherobject of the invention .is to provide a device of .thecharacterdescribed which may bequickly. and easily adjusted to riders ofvarious, weights. V

- A'further object of th'einventionfis to ,provide a swinging seesawwhich isin'herently stable iin its stationary orrider-mounting,position.

Another object is to ,provide .an exhilarating exercise device forchildren of all ages economical to construct, easy to assemble and whichmaybe operated by .evenyoung children without supervision or ,previousinstruction.

'Otherobjects and advantages will be apparent from the descriptionwhichftollows .andalsoirom. the drawings in which I 'Figure 1 is aperspective .viewof .one term-of my invention, and Figure .2 .is asimilar view ,of another .form thereof. Y

Referring now to .Fig. .1 there isshownlabasc l preferably in theoutline of .-a triangle ".or .A frame which comprises longitudinal.members .2, 3 suitably united at their forward .ends .to .the bridgepiece 4 and .reiniorcedkby v.a transverse member .5, the {midpoint ;0fwhichis connected to the midpoint .o'fflbridge piece 4 .byadistancepiece '6. .The flatterfis provided with .a pluralityof longitudinallyspaced holes 7 :for .a purpose. later to'be described.

An upwardly extending .framelmembert having link of a chain [3 dependingtherefrom. The 1 lowermost link of the chain is connected to a splitcollar l4 by means of bolt l5 extending therethrough. Any desiredspacing means such as washers surrounding bolt l5 on each side of thelowermost chain link may be used to main-' tain the link centrally ofthe bolt l5 and collar l4. IT is. clamped between the curved jaws of thesplit An elongated, seat-carrying member collar 14 by means of bolts 18extending through depending ears IQ of collar [4. Bolt [5 is spacedupwardly from the jaws of the collar for a purpose which will bedescribed later. The forward portion of member I! is downwardly offsetat 20 and at. its end is pivotallyconnected to the upper loop of coiltension spring 2|. The lower end of spring 2| is hooked through the hole1; .in distance piece 3 which is directly beneath the;

end of member I1, so that spring 2! extends in a generally verticaldirection as shown in Fig. 1. A seat 22 is supported by an elongatedblock 23 which isunited to the member I! by vertically extending bolts24, 25. Battens 26 on each side of the block 23 prevent lateral shiftingof the seat 22 on its support and also serve to reinforce the same.Similar blocks at each end of seat 22 have steel straps 21 for tightlyclamping the end portions of a metal rod which extends through themember H. A handle bar 28 is projected through the upper ends of posts29 which are The operation of my swinging seesaw is as follows: MemberI! is adjusted in the clamp l4 until the former is approximatelyhorizontal when the child is occupying the seat 22 after which theclamping bolts l8 are tightened. The lower loop of spring 2! should behooked into the hole 6 beneath the end of member ll. The off set portion20 of member I1 and, the substantial spacing of the upper loop of thelowermost chain link above the jaws of collar M together with spring 2|are effective to prevent more than slight turning of member ll about itsmajor axis as the latter moves laterally until stopped by the remoteleg! of the frame 8 (the axis of rotation actually passes through thelower end of the link indicated at 13 in Fig. 1 since the lowermost linkis clamped to move only with the split collar l4) whenthe child climbsinto the seat from the left side of the device as viewed'in Fig. 1 byplacing his foot on therest 32 and hand on the bar 28. This feature isvery effective for inspiring confidence, particularly with youngerriders and adds to the safety of operation at all times since it limitsthe angle through which the member Il may rotate in either directionfrom its normal central position. The motion of the rider may be asimple up and down movement about the lower end of the chain link [3 asa fulcrum, or the rider may start the seat to swinging from side to sideabout the upper point of suspension at l2. As the member I! is displacedan increasing distance from its central position (limited by the legs 9and I0), it rotates slightly but in proportion to the displacement dueto the pendulumlike suspensionof the fulcrum, together with theextensible, inverted pendulum-like suspension. Of

the end of member I! to which the spring isattached, the effect beingaided by the offset mounting l5 and downwardly offset portion 23 ofmember IT. This banking action adds stability without lessening theresponsiveness of the oscillatory system to the riders inclinations. Itis especially useful in the combined, vertical and horizontal swingingmovement, the possibilities of which are soon discovered. In its fullesteXecution the rider loops vertically through great swings that arecontinually shifting from side to side and at the same time, rollingfirst in one direction and then in another as the member ll partiallyrotates. The z natural banking of member I! and the limits to 'itslateral displacement assure safety for the'rider without imparing hisfreedom of movement. There will also be a certain amount of forward andbackward movement of the seat as the member I! moves endwise.

In Fig.- 2 is illustrated a modified form of my invention in which afiat spring of the automobile type has been'substituted for the coilspring. The

flat spring is so arranged that advantage may be taken of the resiliencethroughout its length regardless of the leverage, position of theseatcarrying member." This is accomplished through the provision of apair of spaced members 34; 34c between which the spring 36 isextended.The rear eye of spring 33is pivotally connected to the members34, 340. by means of a bolt-35 extending transversely therethrough whilethe front eye is suitably connected 7 to a chain adapted to be hookedthroughapertures I of the distance piece.

Two vertical members 31, 3'lasuitably fixed to the forward ends ofmembers 34, 34a have a bolt' 39 extending through the upper portionsthereof and passing through the lowermost link of a chain I3 which isconnected to the apex of the upper frame 8 by means of eyebolt l2Suitable washers or rollers surrounding the bolt 39.may beused tomaintain thechain link centrally of the latter.

Pa'ssingthrough the unitedends' of members 34; 34a and 3'1, 31a is abolt 38 on the top'of which the spring 36 bears as a fulcrum. With thisconstruction, adjustmentfortheweight of the rider is made by varying theposition of bolt 35 along the members '34, 34a through longitudinallyspaced holes (not shown) therein, and usefl of the appropriate hole 1,The downward curveof spring 36 to .its lowerend Al together with thesubstantial spacing of bolt 39 above the generally horizontal plane ofthe members 34, 34a, produces the same stabilizing influence on the seatas the spacing of bolt l5 andthe provision: of offset portion 20 in Figl. From the foregoing it will be seen that regardless of the particularembodiment of "my invention, the seat for the, rider as part of anoscillatory system isfree. toswing from I side to side of a centralposition; banking or 60 twisting about its longitudinal center line andtoward its normaLcentral position as itmoves farther to either side ofthelatter. Thisfreedom. of action depends not-only on the suspension ofthe' seat-carrying member but especially the side component of :motionof this member at its front end (i. e. opposite to the. seat-carryingend). It has' been observed that the lateral freedom of member I? atits'two points of connection to the stationary support results in ascissors-like motion of this member about a generally. vertical axisspaced forwardly from the/collar M when the rider causes'vertical andhorizontal movement of the seat. The ends of member-ll, therefore, movelaterally/in opposite directions about such axisv at the same time thatmember I? is twisting axially to-cause the seat to"ba1ik =in- Wardlytoward its normal, central position.

It will be apparent that a wide range of sub stitute materials may beused for those generally indicated in the drawing and yet retain theadvantages of myinvention. Also wide variation in the design andarrangement :of component parts may .be .madeiorthe sake .of economy andcompactness. The seat-carrying member I], for example, may be made ofa-s'ingle metal 'strip so heat-tr'eated-asto be resilient in its forwardportion and relatively unyielding in its rear portion. Conceivably suchmember might also be made of wood of variable cross-section to functionas described. Also the ends of members 2 and 3 may be joined directlyinstead of through the bridge piece 4 which might then be dispensedwith. Since the function of the chain indicated at I3 is to permitpendulum-like swinging of member I! from side to side about an axisspaced a substantial distance above the member I1, and also forward andbackward swinging of this member, it is apparent that other expedientssuch as a laterally extending bolt and a companion clevis may besubstituted for the bolt I 5 and lower link of chain I3. An eyeboltlinked to the eyebolt l2 and having its lower end threaded into thecentral opening of the clevis would then be substituted for theremaining links of chain I3. The seat 22 would then be even more stablein its central position than obtains in Fig. 1, since lateral swingingof member I I would be about the loop portion of eyebolt l2.

What is claimed as new is:

1. A seesaw comprising a support, elongated seat-carrying means, and aplurality of spaced connecting means between said support and saidfirst-named means permitting lateral movement of said seat-carryingmeans about an axis located between two of said connecting means andextending in the same general direction thereof, one of said meansproviding inherent resilience for counter-balancing the weight of arider carried by said first-named means.

2. A seesaw comprising a support, elongated, seat-carrying means, and aplurality of spaced, connecting means between said support and saidfirst-named means permitting partial rotational movement and alsolateral movement of said seatcarrying means about an axis locatedbetween two of said connecting means and extending in the same generaldirection thereof, one at least of said connecting means providinginherent resilience for oounterbalancing the Weight of a rider carriedby said first-named means.

3. A seesaw comprising a support, elongated seat-carrying means, andmeans interconnecting said support and said first-named means at aplurality of spaced points permitting limited rotational movement ofsaid seat carrying means about its longitudinal axis, one of said meansproviding inherent resilience for counterbalancing the weight of a ridercarried by said firstnamed means.

4. A seesaw comprising a support, elongated seat-carrying means, aninextensible, swinging connection between said support and said means ata. point intermediate the ends of the latter and means interconnectingsaid support and said seat-carrying means at a point spaced from saidfirst point for permitting lateral movement of said seat-carrying meansat said spaced point, one of said means providing inherent resiliencefor counterbalancing the weight of a rider carried by said first-namedmeans.

' 59A seesaw comprising a support, elongated, seat-carrying means, aninextensible, swinging connection-between saidsupport and-said means atpoin'tiint'ermediatethe-endsof the latter for stabilizing said means in.a central position and for permitting lateral movement'thereof and meansfor interconnecting said support and said seat-carrying means at apointspaced from-said first point, said last-named meansproviding'inherent'resilience for counterbalancing the weight of a riderc'arried by said seat-carrying means.

-6. A-seesaw comprising a support, elongated seat-carrying means, aswinging connection between said support and said means intermediate theends of the latter and means interconnecting said support and a point onsaid first-named means located below the longitudinal axis of the latterfor permitting lateral movement of said seat-carrying means at saidpoint, one of said means providing inherent resilience forcounterbalancing the weight of a rider carried by said first-namedmeans.

7. A seesaw of the single occupant type comprising a base, an upperframe secured to said base and an elongated, counterbalancedseatcarrying member suspended from said frame for rocking movement abouttwo horizontal axes normal to each other and having swinging connectionwith said base whereby oscillation of said member may be initiated andmaintained by a rider fully supported by said member.

8. A seesaw comprising a longitudinally disposed base having an upperframe secured thereto, elongated seat-carrying means having a downwardlyoffset portion at one end thereof, attaching means projectingsubstantially above the longitudinal axis of said seat-carrying meansand rigidly united thereto, a swinging connection between said frame andsaid attaching means, and means providing inherent resilience andinterconnecting said base and said downwardly ofiset portion forcentrally stabilizing said seat-carrying means and for counterbalancingthe weight of a rider carried thereby.

9. A seesaw comprising a support including a horizontal base portion, anelongated seat-carrying member, suspension means between said supportand said member intermediate the ends of the latter, means connectingsaid support and one end of said member for permitting lateral movementof said end and twisting of said member about its longitudinal axis, oneof said means providing with said support a resilient counterbalance iora rider carried by said seat-carrying member.

10. A swinging seesaw comprising a support, an elongated seat-carryingmember, a seat carried thereby and means interconnecting said supportand said member at a plurality of points spaced along the latter wherebythe seat-carrying portion of the latter may twist axially to and from anormally stationary, central position as it swings to either side of thelatter said means including a resilient portion so that saidseat-carrying portion may simultaneously oscillate substantiallyvertically under the weight of a rider carried thereby.

11. A seesaw comprising a base, elongated seatcarrying means, and aplurality of spaced connecting means between said base and saidfirstnamed means tending to stabilize said seat-carrying means in acentral position and permitting twisting or banking thereof about anaxis extending in the direction of its longitudinal axis as therespective ends thereof are moved laterally in opposite directions fromsaid stabilized, central position by the shifting of a rider seatedthereon, I

at least one of said means providing inherent resilience foroounterbalancing the weight of said rider.

12. A seesaw comprising a support, elongated seat-carrying means,resilient means intercon-p necting said support and one end of saidfirstnamed means, and means interconnecting said support and anintermediate portion of said firstnamed means permitting axial movementof said first-named means and also rocking movement thereof about twohorizontal axes normal to-each other.

EMME'IT C. BAILEY.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 10 Number Name Date 666,802 Ford- Jan. 29, 19011,608,821

Sherrod Nov. 30, 1926

